Chapter 52
FLETCHER
I was yanked away from Adam, whose face had gone ashen pale, his skin stained with the blood that gushed from the gash across his throat where Tank had slit it, like the monster he truly was.
Tank’s grip on my wrist was like a shackle, but I struggled and fought and kicked, screaming at him at the top of my lungs. “What did you do?! YOU KILLED HIM!” I shrieked. “YOU KILLED ADAM!” I burst into hysterical sobs, suddenly unable to breathe.
Tank slapped me across the face, grabbing me by the shirt collar and yanking me in.
I could smell the bitter mint of his chewing gum on his breath, but it did little to cover up his licorice stink.
“You made me! If you’d just played nice, this wouldn’t have happened,” he snapped.
“This is YOUR fault, Fletcher. He’s dead because of YOU! You forced my hand!”
“No…” I uttered, breathless. “NO!”
Grief and fury blistering up inside of me, I screamed and lunged at Tank. I grabbed his hand, the one still gripping the weapon he’d used to kill Adam with, and swiped at him with my claws.
“What the fuck?” Tank snarled, jerking back.
In my right mind, I would’ve never dared to assault an Alpha. Alphas were powerful, far stronger than a single Omega, and men like Tank would make it hurt and relish in my screams. But what he’d done was unforgiving, and I was too far gone to care.
My eyes blurry with tears, I swiped at him again, slashing my claws across Tank’s horribly beautiful face. Tank wheeled back with a roar, but it gave me the chance to wrestle the knife out of his grasp.
“Fletcher!” Tank’s voice was sharp, but there was an undercurrent of fear there, and that fear led me to do what I did. Because he deserved it. Because if Adam was gone, I had no one left in this world, and I would rather die than let Tank live.
Sobbing, I plunged the blade into Tank’s chest. Tank screamed, but I wrenched it out and did it again. And again. And again. He stumbled to the ground and I landed on top of him.
“WHAT DID YOU DO?” I screamed, my voice raw, stabbing him over and over, until blood splattered my face and slicked my hands.
I slumped over him, shaking and crying. Tank lay still beneath me, gasping weakly. I pushed myself away from the mess I’d made and went over to Adam. I sank to my knees beside him and touched his too-pale face. His skin was cold and clammy, his gaze half-lidded, staring up at the dark sky.
“Adam… Baby? Please, don’t leave me alone again,” I begged him. “I can’t do it alone. Please…”
I wrapped my hands around Adam’s sliced throat and tried to put pressure on the wound. People had gathered around, whispering to one another. My head snapped to them, anger bubbling free. “Don’t just stand there! HELP ME! He’s dying!” Then, to Adam, “Baby, please, hang on.”
The ambulance pulled in, followed by several police cruisers with their flashing red and blues.
The EMS team clustered around Adam, loading him onto a stretcher and into the back of their emergency vehicle.
I watched helplessly as they flipped on their sirens and sped away, wondering if that was the last time I would ever see my mate alive.
I collapsed on the ground, wrapping my arms around myself as the inevitable breakdown slammed into me. “No, no, no, no.” This couldn’t be happening. I rocked back and forth, trying to breathe, but I couldn’t. I couldn’t see through my tears.
“Put your hands where we can see them,” an officer barked. It took me too long to realize he was talking to me. “Now!”
Right. I killed someone. I was going to jail, but at least Adam was avenged. Tank wouldn’t hurt anyone else.
I carefully raised my hands in front of me, then laid down on the ground. I didn’t resist as the cops roughly cuffed me and hauled me up off the pavement, but I couldn’t stop crying, either. Covered in blood and sobbing like a grieving widower, I was a hot mess.
“What happened here tonight?” A flashlight was shined into my face, making me squint and look away. I took a few breaths to try and regain my composure before telling the truth.
“Tank and Adam got into a fight over me. Tank slit Adam’s throat and he was trying to kidnap me, so I k-killed him before he could take me away.
” I hung my head, fresh tears spilling free.
“He’s been harassing us for months. I’m sorry.
I won’t resist. I’ll turn myself in. I’ll never see my mate again anyway. Nothing matters anymore.”
Tucked into the backseat of the police cruiser, I was reminded of that very first day I met Adam, when I’d failed to rob him.
And now I was being taken away by police once more, at the end of our relationship.
Irony at its finest. I pressed my forehead against the cool window and let the tears fall where they may.
Back at the jail, I was given a fresh jumpsuit to change into and allowed to wash the blood off my skin before they locked me in a small cell.
I was alone. Truly, utterly alone now. I curled up on the cold cement floor and I cried, my heart broken wide open, its contents having spilled out over the pavement back at the restaurant.
My life was over.
An hour or so later, they brought me in for questioning. I told them everything—from meeting Tank at the club, to the sex, to the obsession and the breakup and the stalking, to the attack and the restraining order. And now…
“He was obsessed with me,” I murmured, my voice hoarse.
“I have all the texts on my phone. I kept them, just in case anything were to happen. He kept saying that I belonged to him, and that he would claim what was his. When I blocked one number, another started harassing me. After we filed the restraining order, though, things died down. We thought it was over…”
I drew in a sharp breath, then rubbed at my eyes. “But he was just laying in wait this whole time. I’m so stupid.”
Officer Stan was strangely kind to me, but I was a whole mess, snotting and crying and trying to tell him everything he wanted to know without losing it all over again.
“Will I be sent to prison?” I asked, finally.
The man smiled sadly. “I’m afraid it’s not so cut and dry.
You’ll be appointed a lawyer, and you’ll go to court.
To me, this seems like a clear case of self-defense, but it’s not up to me.
We need more evidence, and we’ll do a thorough investigation.
You might get off without doing time, depending on the judge.
Don’t get your hopes up, though. You did just kill a man. ”
My shoulders slumped. “Right.”
“I know it’s a hard pill to swallow,” he said. “You’ve been through a lot tonight. Let’s get you back to your cell. I’ll see what I can do.”
I nodded and followed him, but I didn’t sleep. All I could see was the shocked look on Adam’s face, the open gash slashed across his neck, and all the blood…